More Than Compassion
by iloveromance
Summary: When Niles suffers a head injury in the kitchen, a lovestruck Daphne doesn't hesitate to offer her assistance. But she finds that she's the only one who is concerned when other symptoms begin to arise and she must take matters into her own hands, even if it means going against the wishes of one Frasier Crane. AU "Guess Who's Coming to Breakfast?"


She was deep in thought, busy working in the kitchen but her mind wasn't on the dishes she was cleaning, or on the food that she was preparing. As was almost always the case, her thoughts were centered on one person, Dr. Crane. Not the tall, sophisticated man who hired her to take care of his father, but of his younger brother, also Dr. Crane. Dr. _Niles_ _Crane_ to be exact.

In the weeks since they had met, she found herself growing closer to him. It was a closeness that could only be associated with friendship but there was no denying the underlying feeling she got whenever she was in his presence. And he was so handsome. She never let on that there was even the slightest attraction, for to do so would possibly jeopardize her position as Dr. Crane's father's physical therapist.

It was a job that she coveted, for as she was well aware, employment was hard to come by in the States, much like her home in Manchester. It was simply wrong to have an attraction to someone who was related to her boss. But as her boss often said, the heart never lies. She couldn't tell her heart not to feel what it was feeling. And so while she was on duty, she maintained a professional appearance, never even hinting-.

"Knock knock."

She gasped slightly at the sound of his voice. Newly divorced he was over quite often and she wanted to let him know that she cared. But to do so seemed inappropriate. Still there must be some way-

"Can I be of assistance?"

She smiled, his simple words warming her heart. Niles was always going out of his way to offer his help, even when it wasn't necessary. Perhaps that's why she'd been thinking about him more than usual lately.

"No, I think I've got everything under control. Thank you, Dr. Crane."

"Mind if I linger then?"

Once more her heart warmed. "Not at all. I enjoy your company."

"So… how's Dad's therapy going?" He asked as he reached behind him, placing his hands on the counter.

"Well, your father has more flexibility in his hip and his mobility is improving. Of course the secret I've found to getting him to do his exercises is to bribe him with sweets."

"Well you shouldn't need to bribe anyone to be with you because-."

There was a loud bang followed by a cry of pain. "OUCH!"

Another resonating sound and she turned in horror to see Niles bang his head on the hood of the oven and fall to the floor.

"Oh my God! Dr Crane!"

The towel fell from her hand and she dropped to her knees. Kneeling beside him she cradled him in her arms and gently stroked his forehead. And as she looked into his eyes, she noticed for the first time how blue they were. And how beautiful. But the most striking thing was the way he was looking at her. His eyes pulling her in like pools of blue sea. Her heart was beating rapidly and she wondered if he could feel it. As she continued to stroke his hair, she noticed other things; how soft his hair was, how wonderful it smelled. The softness of his skin and the way he made her feel. She licked her dry lips and fought the urge to kiss him. "Do you think you can get up?"

"No… I'm thinking I should stay here for a few minutes." He replied.  
"A-all right." She said quietly as she resumed stroking his hair.

"Niles, what are you doing?"

The outburst caught them both off guard and they looked up to find Frasier glaring at him in the doorway. "What's going on here?"  
"Your brother hit his head on the oven vent and went crashing to the floor!" Daphne replied. When Niles groaned in pain, she pulled him closer and stroked his cheek. "Are you going to be all right?"

"He and his_ ego_ will be just fine!" Frasier snapped. "Niles, get up this instant! Dear God, you are _shameless_!"

As Daphne carefully helped Niles to his feet, he glared at his brother, his mouth open in shock. "How dare you!"

"Niles, don't be such an imbecile! It's obvious to everyone but you that this was no accident! There are no accidents! It was just a ploy to get Daphne's attention!"  
Now it was Daphne who glared at her boss. How dare he speak to his bother in such a terrible manner, let alone his employee?

"Dr. Crane, leave your brother alone!" She yelled. "So what if he was trying to get me attention? It worked, didn't it?" Just saying the words warmed her heart although she knew that it simply wasn't true. It most certainly was an accident. For him to hit his head and send him falling to the floor could only be construed as such. And when she'd helped him to his feet, there was no mistaking the way he swayed with dizziness. Her hand went to his forearm and she looked at him worriedly. "Are you sure you're going to be all right? You've had quite a fall."

"He's fine, Daphne!" Frasier snapped. Grabbing his little brother by the arm and dragged him out of the kitchen. "Come on Niles. There's something that I wish to discuss with you."

Daphne thought quickly and wrapped some ice in a towel which she twisted into a knot. "Here you are, Dr. Crane." She said to Niles. "Keep that on your head for a while."

To her amazement he smiled. "Thank you, Daphne. You've been such an angel in my time of need." He said as he was being pulled into the living room.

When he was no longer visible in sight, she sighed deeply, smiling to herself as his sweet words resounded in her head;

"Thank you Daphne. You've been such an angel in my time of need."

_You're welcome Dr. Crane._ She said silently. _And for what it's worth, you're an angel too._


End file.
